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To the Clerk of Council: Sent: Feb. 28, 2021 Please have these comments read durinq Public Session at the meeting of Council on March 2, 2021, and put into the record. To the President of Council, all of Council, and the Administration: This is my perspective on the Covid 19 Virus and the impact it is having on this community. First off, some background. Vaccinating America is a monumental task and the weakest link is the supply of vaccine. To do this with supplies on hand, means to supply the states on a priority basis. From there, the States are spreading the allotted vaccines to the County for distribution. I will only address this county and what I have observed over the last 6 weeks. A couple of weeks ago, Beachwood had a community vaccination. When Carol and I tried to secure vaccinations for us, nothing was available in the Westshore area, yet people I know were having no trouble getting an appointment and being vaccinated on the east side. Last Friday, a close friend got his shot at the Giant Eagle in Mayfield Hts., although he told me he could have gotten it at the South Euclid Giant Eagle, as well. There was none available when we checked their stores in No. Olmsted, Fairview, and Rocky River. When checking with Walgreens, we could get appointments at the one on Mayfield and Superior or the one at Cedar and Warrensville. But there was nothing available at the North Olmsted, Westlake, or Rocky River Walgreens. Are you beginning to get the idea that the County distribution is not giving us equal treatment? Fast forward to the issue at hand: Carol and I would eat out at least once a week. That's about 52 times a year. We haven't eaten out in the last 11 months. We're not starving. We both can cook really well, but the virus has curbed our going into closed environments for long periods of time especially where people are not masked. That also includes local retail. Carol now does much of her shopping on-line and by the looks of the FedX, UPS, and Prime trucks going down our small street several time a day, 7 days a week, my neighbors are doing the same thing. Bottom line: There are probably thousands of people, like us, in this area, not shopping the small shops or eating out in this area because of the Virus. Certainly, if we could get vaccinated, we would return to normal but right now it doesn't look good for the availability of vaccinations in the Westshore area. Meanwhile, Chris Glassburn and the administration are proposing a little financial Band-Aid to help the hemorrhaging of jobs and the loss businesses in North Olmsted, which is wreaking havoc on our local economy and the city's budget. Perhaps a better approach would be to address the root -mean cause of this problem and that would be public confidence -- getting our citizens vaccinated as soon as possible. I would certainly recommend starting with our County Councilwoman, Nan Baker, and going from there along with the other cities in our district. Once the people are somewhat confident that they won't get this virus, they will return to shopping and eating out locally, once again. Dennis Lambert, 25057 Carey Lane, North Olmsted